Sadie and her four brothers live in a small house on the outskirts of a small and very cold Russian town. They are always cold, always poor, and always hungry. On the first night of Channukah when Sadie is gathering firewood she meets an old woman who is even poorer and colder than she. Generously, Sadie offers her firewood to the old woman who in exchange gives her the gift of a frying pan that magically cooks latkes.

After seven nights of filling their bellies with delicious, hot, crispy latkes Sadie decides to go look for the old woman to say thank you and invite her to come eat with them for the last night of Channukah. While she is away, her brothers get into mischief and end up with latkes filling the house and flowing out the door. In the end the whole village is able to enjoy the bounty of the latkes, and the brothers learn how important it is to listen to instructions.

Development Activities

To help keep the attention of younger children, have them recite the special words with Sadie when she cooks up the latkes. "Latkes, latkes, good to eat. Cook me up a Channukah treat!"

"Latkes, Latkes, Good to Eat" is filled with beautiful, detailed, and vibrant illustrations. Take advantage of that to talk about the pictures with your children. What do you see in the picture? What do you think the characters are feeling? What is the most interesting part of the picture to you? Or even play iSpy while reading the book.

Related Discussion Questions:

Why did Tante give the frying pan to Sadie?

Have you ever gotten anything good because you helped someone?

Did Sadie's brothers follow her instructions? What happened?

Have you ever had a negative consequence from not listening to your parents or other cargiver?

How do you think Sadie's mother felt when she got home?

What was your favorite part of the book?

Activities for Kids:

Make latkes. There is a wonderful recipe at the back of the book.

Think of some way to do something nice for some one else, and then do it together. Perhaps draw a picture to send to your grandmother or even a nursing home resident that you don't know. If you call the hospital or nursing home in your area they will be able to tell you how to send cards or letters.

Have your own Hannukah party!

Cultural Diversity: This tale is set in Russia and depicts a a town and people from 1800s era Russia. This can be a great opportunity to look for the things that are different from your life and talk about the different lives of others, or even a short history lesson.Children's Book Review Rating: 5 Stars - Beautiful Book

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Why Beautiful Books for Children?

“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go.” ― Dr. SeussWe believe that reading with your children, and then building on that reading by connecting with real world experiences, help children grow to their potential every day! It is a process we call "learning through integrative play." Learn more.